Shloka 24
Draupadī’s Lament and Theodicy: Dharma, Dice, and Īśvara’s Governance (Āraṇyaka-parva 31)
धर्म एव प्लवो नान्य: स्वर्ग द्रौपदि गच्छताम् । सैव नौ: सागरस्येव वणिज: पारमिच्छत:,ट्रपदकुमारी! जैसे समुद्रके पार जानेकी इच्छा-वाले वणिक्के लिये जहाजकी आवश्यकता है, वैसे ही स्वर्गमें जानेवालोंके लिये धर्माचरण ही जहाज है, दूसरा नहीं
dharma eva plavo nānyaḥ svargaṃ draupadi gacchatām | saiva nauḥ sāgarasyeva vaṇijaḥ pāram icchataḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dijo: «Sólo el Dharma es la balsa—no hay otra—para quienes desean ir al cielo, oh Draupadī. Así como el mercader que anhela cruzar el océano necesita un navío, del mismo modo, para quienes buscan la meta celeste, la conducta justa es la única embarcación.»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma (righteous conduct) is presented as the sole reliable means of attaining the higher goal (svarga). Like a ship enabling an ocean-crossing, ethical living is the indispensable support for crossing beyond worldly peril toward a blessed destination.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Draupadī and frames a moral instruction: for those aiming at heaven, there is no alternative ‘vehicle’ besides dharma. He uses a vivid commercial-seafaring simile—merchant and ship—to make the necessity of dharma concrete and practical.